Using Your Smart Phone as Your Homekeeping Handbook Part 4

In this fourth, and final part of this series, I will be telling you about some miscellaneous apps that I used often and enjoy.  If you would like to read the first three parts of this series, you can find them at:

Part 1 – Bible/Quiet Time
Part 2 – scheduling, to-do list, and cleaning routine
Part 3 – Menu Planning and Shopping

Today, I’m going to be telling you about some of the other apps that I use quite a bit on my iPhone.   Some are just handy little apps, while others I use with hobbies, games, and more.  So let’s get started!

Social Network Apps

I am so glad that these are available on my iPhone.  They allow me to keep in touch with my online friends while on the go and are great for just killing some time in the doctor’s office or anytime when I’m having to wait around.  Here are my favorites–the best part is they are all FREE!

Facebook – Facebook for iPhone makes it easy to stay connected and share information with friends. Use your iPhone to start a conversation with Facebook Chat, check your friends’ latest photos and status updates, look up a phone number, or upload your own mobile photos to Facebook while on the go.

Google+ – Real-life sharing rethought for the web, wherever you are.  Google+ for mobile makes sharing the right things with the right people a lot simpler.

Pinterest – I’ve become addicted to Pinterest on the computer, so of course when I found an app for it, I had to get it.  Think of Pinterest as a virtual pinboard — a place to catalog and share the things you love.  Pin anything that catches your eye: memorable meals, places to visit, or great shopping finds!

MobileRSS Free ~ Google RSS News Reader – MobileRSS is a fully-featured Google Reader client for iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad. We’ve built a ton of powerful and exclusive features onto an elegant and familiar design platform which makes reading the news fun again. We think you’ll like it!

Utilities

These are all handy little tools that I use often on my iPhone.

DataMan Free – Real Time Data Usage Manager – Get usage alerts and stop exceeding your data allowance! The ultimate weapon against data overage charges – DataMan tracks your data usage in real time, giving you always up-to-date usage statistics. No other apps come close to DataMan for its precision.

Dragon Dictation – Dragon Dictation is an easy-to-use voice recognition application powered by Dragon® NaturallySpeaking® that allows you to easily speak and instantly see your text or email messages. In fact, it’s up to five times faster than typing on the keyboard.  With Dragon Dictation you can also dictate status updates directly to your Social Networking applications (Facebook and Twitter) or send notes and reminders to yourself….all using your voice.  So when you’re on-the-go, stop typing and start speaking – from short text messages to longer email messages, and anything in between.

Maps & More

Maps are so handy to have available on your iPhone.  Instant access in case you get lost or want to find something interesting to do.

MapQuest 4 Mobile – MapQuest is the #1 provider of FREE voice-guided, turn-by-turn, GPS navigation for iPhone. Your phone speaks to you, telling you when to make a turn. Easily search with a single click while on the go. Stay on schedule by checking live traffic en route. If you take a wrong turn, MapQuest re-routes you automatically.

 MomMaps – Mom Maps helps you find fun, kid-friendly locations on the go!

Life 360 – Life360 turns your phone into the ultimate safety device and let’s you knoW: Where your family members are located, What safety points and threats are nearby, When your loved ones are safe or need help.  Life360 is the leader in mobile safety and are recognized as the most powerful, accurate, and battery efficient family locator available. Life360 is also the only tracking application that is also compatible with regular phones, so you can locate family members who don’t have smartphones.

Games

I don’t personally play a lot of games on my phone, but I do enjoy Solitaire from time to time.  Mostly I keep games on my phone as a way to entertain Riley when he’s restless or he needs to be quiet for a little bit.  Works great when we go out to eat and he finishes before everyone else or we’re waiting for our food to arrive!

Scoops – Stack your ice cream cone high into the sky by tilting the phone left and right, catching as many scoops as you can while avoiding the vegetables (veggies ARE great apart from icecream!). The higher you go, the faster they fall, and the more wobbly your tower! Stack similar colors together for extra points.

Giraffe’s Matching Zoo – Your kids will have so much fun, they won’t even realize they’re learning.  Giraffe’s Matching Zoo is a vibrant and exciting mind development game designed for children, but fun for all ages.  Every adorable animal makes a unique and entertaining sound.  Fun music, cute animations and special effects make this game a blast to play.

Temple Run – Test your reflexes as you race down ancient temple walls and along sheer cliffs. Swipe to turn, jump and slide to avoid obstacles, collect coins and buy power ups, and see how far you can run!

Top Truck Free – Ever dreamed of crushing cars in a bad boy monster truck? Now you can in Top Truck! Race across 3 distinct worlds in crazy settings. Send the crowd to fever pitch as you crush cars, destroy terrain & grab bonus points!  Search for hidden routes within the levels to finish in style, and enjoy some barnstorming loop-the-loops!

Solitaire – The same classic Windows Solitaire game plus the ability to control card movements naturally by just swiping or tapping the cards on your iPhone/iPod touch/iPad.

Books

I love reading and there are always tons of good ebooks available for FREE.  My husband bought me a Nook last Christmas and I loved it.  But then I got an iPhone and found that I can get a Nook app for  my phone, along with a Kindle App!!  I’m in book heaven!

Nook – Start reading in seconds – new users can create an account at BN.com. NOOK™ for iPhone from Barnes & Noble offers an incredible reading experience, with more than two million NOOK Books, including New York Times best sellers, new releases, thousands of free books, and sample books free. It is also easy to share eBooks with friends and family using NOOK’s exclusive LendMe™ technology. Get the FREE NOOK app for iPhone now.  And we’re not just transforming your iPhone. We have a free Nook app for your iPad, Mac and PC, other smartphones, and a great dedicated eBook reader called NOOK, so you can read the NOOK Books you buy from us on the screen you want.

Kindle – The Kindle app is optimized for the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch, giving users the ability to read Kindle books, newspapers, and magazines on a beautiful, easy-to-use interface. You’ll have access to over 950,000* books in the Kindle Store plus over 100* newspapers and magazines. Amazon Whispersync automatically syncs your last page read, bookmarks, notes, and highlights across devices (including Kindle), so you can pick up your book where you left off on another device.

Good Reads – Goodreads is a free website for everyone who reads. We have more than 6,000,000 members who have added more than 100,000,000 books to their shelves. Our mission is to help you find new and interesting books by showing you what your friends are reading. Browsing Goodreads is like wandering through the world’s largest library. Find thousands of book reviews and peruse the bookshelves of friends and other readers. Post your own reviews and keep track of what you have read and want to read.

Entertainment

There’s nothing like having your favorite music and movies available on the go!  Many times, we go through a fast food joint with wifi and then go sit out in the car and eat and watch a movie!

Pandora – Pandora Radio is your own free personalized radio now available to stream music on your iPhone or iPad. Just start with the name of one of your favorite artists, songs or classical composers and Pandora will create a “station” that plays their music and more music like it.

Netflix – Get Netflix on your iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch. Just download this free app and you can instantly watch TV shows & movies streaming from Netflix.

RedBox – The official redbox iPhone app lets you browse and reserve movies, games, watch trailers, plus find the nearest redbox kiosk from wherever you are. Find a redbox: Find the closest redbox kiosk, save favorites, and get directions (with a map!) to that or any other redbox nearby.  Find a movie: See every movie that’s available at redbox, or narrow it down to see what’s inside of your favorite redbox kiosk. Search by genres, too!  Reserve a movie: Once you find just what you’re looking for, reserve it ASAP on your iPhone so it’ll be waiting for you when you get to the redbox kiosk.

In Case of an Emergency

These two apps my husband requested that we put on all our phones in case of an emergency.  If nothing else, they are interesting reads 🙂

Survival Guide – Survival skills are techniques a person may use in a dangerous situation (e.g. natural disasters) to save themselves or others (see also bushcraft). Generally speaking, these techniques are meant to provide the basic necessities for human life: water, food, shelter, habitat, and the need to think straight, to signal for help, to navigate safely, to avoid unpleasant interactions with animals and plants, and for first aid. In addition, survival skills are often basic ideas and abilities that ancient humans had to use for thousands of years, so these skills are partially a reenactment of history. Many of these skills are the ways to enjoy extended periods of time in remote places, or a way to thrive in nature. Some people use these skills to better appreciate nature and for recreation, not just survival.

SAS Survival Guide – SAS Survival Lite is the FREE version of the complete SAS Survival Guide, available now in the app store. Based on the million-copy bestselling book, this fantastic free app provides you with a bare bones guide to wilderness survival. Jam-packed with basic survival tools, you’ll be equipped for any expedition to the outdoors with this entry-level guide in your arsenal.

Well this is the this series on using your smart phone as your homekeeping handbook.  I hope you’ve found it useful and these tips help you to become a better homemaker!

Using Your Smart Phone as Your Homekeeping Handbook Part 3

My Shopping apps on my iPhone

In this third part of the series, I’m going to be talking about how I use my iPhone for Menu Planning and Shopping.  If you would like to read the first two parts of this series, you can find them at:

Part 1 – Bible/Quiet Time
Part 2 – scheduling, to-do list, and cleaning routines

In today’s post I will be telling you about the apps I use for my shopping and errand day, which is on Fridays.  I use a variety of apps, which help me save time and money.

The first thing I do when I sit down to plan for my shopping and errand day is to make up a menu for the week.  In the past I did this on paper and then would end up throwing it away after the week was over.  So make thing easier, I created a to-do list in my Cozi app for my Menu Plan.  This makes it accessible to other family members via their smart phones and the internet.  I created it in the to-do area of the Cozi app because that’s where I already have all my other lists, so it just made sense to put it there as well.  When I make up my Menu Plan for the week, I include breakfast, lunch and dinner.  I simply go to the Cozi website and enter the information each week into the Menu Plan list (in the to-do area of my Cozi app).  Once I get that scheduled, I start creating a grocery list.

My Menu Plan list on Cozi

I go through my recipes and plan my menu, but sometimes I get stuck and I use the All Recipes Recipe Spinner App.  I’ve found some fun and tasty recipes that way.  It’s also FREE.

AllRecipes Recipe Spinner

I also use the Coupons.com app to find coupons I can use and print directly from my iPhone or have them emailed to directly to me to print.  It’s also FREE.

Coupons.com app

I went looking for a grocery app; I wanted something that I could access via my iPhone or the computer.  This is because on long lists, I really dislike having to try to type on the small keyboard that pops up on my phone.  I can type much faster using a regular sized keyboard.  So having it available on both the iPhone and the computer is really handy.  I also wanted to be able to sync with our various phones and computers so my grocery lists could be shared.  I also wanted a grocery list that would allow me to sort items by categories.  I also wanted to be able to check things off as I purchased them and keep track of prices.  I discovered all of this in an app called Grocery IQ.  With Grocery IQ, I can enter product quantity, package size, price and more.  I can create lists for individual stores, or just have a single list.  I can organize my list by aisles so I can easily navigate the store.  I can even print or email coupons directly from Grocery IQ.  I can email my grocery lists to other family members and the lists can be synced and updated from multiple devices.  This makes creating and using grocery lists simple and easy AND it’s FREE!

Grocery IQ App shopping list

When I’m making up my grocery shopping list, I use an app called Grocery Pal.  This is a neat little app that I can use to see the grocery store sales ads for stores in my areas.  It does seem to be only major “brands” of stores, but in my area it lists Brookshires, CVS, HEB, Sam’s, Target, Walmart, and Walgreens.  I use these ads to plan my menus and see what good deals are available in each store.  It does more, but this is what I use it for.  It’s also FREE.

Grocery Buddy App

After I create my grocery shopping list, I then make a list of all the errands I need to run and put it in my to-do list in Cozi .  This helps me keep from forgetting things.

Errand To-Do list in Cozi

I also plan out my garage sales through a neat app called Garage Sale Rover.  I use it along with it’s other app called Garage Sale Poster.  Garage Sale Rover uses the Craig’s list garage sales listing and posts them on the app, which has a mapping system.  I use Garage Sale Poster to list any garage sales I find in my local papers, which are not listed on Craig’s list.  With Garage Sale Rover, I can select the sales I want to go to, get turn-by-turn directions and information about the sales.  This is a great organizational tool for helping me to plot out my garage sale-ing.  These apps help me to make the most out of my garage sale-ing and keep me from getting lost while out.  Garage Sale Rover is a FREE app, but the Garage Sale Poster is $2.99.

Garage Sale Rover App

Garage Sale Poster App

Another app that I use for grocery shopping is Key Ring.  With this app, I can scan in all the bar codes from my grocery store loyalty cards.  This is handy because I don’t like having all those on my key ring.  The checker can just scan the bar code from your phone.  It’s also handy to record the numbers in case you lose your cards.  It also lists specials from the different stores.

Key Ring App

I also like to use the Gas Buddy app to help me find the cheapest gas in the area…just a helpful little app; I use regularly when out shopping.

Gas Buddy app

I also like to use the RedLaser app.  You can use it to scan bar codes and QR codes and find that item in different stores online and locally.  This helps you find better prices on items and to comparison shop.

Red Laser App

Thrift Buddy is another app that I really like.  It will locate thrift stores in whatever area you are in.  I like to use it when I’m out of town to find thrift shops when I have time to kill.  You can also use it to create wish lists, so you can keep track of things you are looking for at thrift stores and garage sales.  I use it to list family’s sizes and pretty much anything I would like to purchase used.  If your thrift stores aren’t listed you can go ahead and list them, which will help you remember about them, but also share them with other Thrift Buddy users.

Thrift Buddy App

And last but not least, there’s the CraigsApp, which is an app that allows you to search the Craig’s list for your area through you iPhone.    Just like Craig’s list for the computer, only mobile.

As you can see, there are quite a lot of useful apps for managing your grocery shopping and general shopping and errands.  I love that I can be mobile and have all this at my fingertips in such a tiny device.  In part four of this series I will be sharing some of my other favorite miscellaneous apps for the iPhone.

Using Your Smart Phone as Your Homekeeping Handbook Part 2

In this second part of this series, I’m going to be talking about how I do my scheduling, to-do list, and cleaning routines.  If you missed part 1 of this series, you can find it here.  It covers how I do my Bible/quiet time and scripture memory on my iPhone.

Home Screen for the Cozi Calendar, the Flylady Edition.

In my huge Homekeeping Handbook binder, this is the section that I use the most often.  It’s really the “brains” of the whole binder system.  When I started looking for an app for my iPhone that I could use to replace this section of my binder, I tried a bunch of different apps trying to find one that would do everything that I needed it to do. I wanted it to contain a calendar, to-do lists and an easy grocery list.  I wanted to be able to access the information from my phone AND my computer.  I wanted something that would send alerts around to each member of the family reminding them about upcoming events and would allow each family member to add and update these lists as needed.  I actually figured I’d have to end up using several programs to find what I need.  BUT that was until I discovered Cozi!!  I actually found this via a Facebook friend who told me about the Cozi Calendar.  This one program had everything that I needed and was so versatile and easy to use AND it’s FREE!!

Scheduling/Family Calendar

Screen shot of Cozi calendar

Cozi’s calendar is so handy!  With Cozi’s calendar, you can manage your family calendar and set reminders. Add an appointment and it uploads to your Cozi account so everyone can see it. It’s an online calendar the whole family can access from their own computers, phones or other mobile devices. When you update via your phone or your computer and the whole family can access the calendar.  You can assign a color to each family member and create a color-coded family calendar, it’s easy to see where everyone is supposed to be. You can set appointment reminders or send the weekly agenda direct to a family member’s inbox.  I’ve found Cozi to be one of the easiest ways to manage home and family schedules in one central location.  You can even import existing Internet calendars, including personal iCals (Google or Yahoo calendar), or public iCals (sports or school calendars).  Print the calendar by week or month to give to your kids. Or, post it in places they’re bound to see them like the front door or their foreheads.  Share family activities with a babysitter or grandparent by adding a tab for them in the calendar.

To-do Lists & Cleaning Routines

Screen shot of my to-do lists

This is probably my VERY favorite feature of the Cozi app!  With Cozi, you can create a shared or individual to do list for anyone in the family. Print your kid’s chore list to post in a place they’re bound to see it. Cozi lets your family manage a task list from any computer with Internet access or with their smart phones.  You can easily check off items as you do them to help you stay on track during the day.  The lists are printable as well, so they are easy to print off for family members.  In my Cozi to-do lists, I have created checklists for my Prayer List, to-dos, morning routine, afternoon routine, evening routine, basic weekly plan, Flylady zones, and a cleaning checklist for each room of the house.

For my prayer list, I simply enter the name and a brief prayer request.  Then when I’m doing my intercessory prayer for the day, I simply check them off as I pray for them.  Makes it quick and easy and I never forget anyone any more!

I have a to-do list of things that I need to do each day, such as make certain phone calls, pay bills, and things that aren’t normally in my usual day-to-day lists.  My usual day-to-day lists include my morning, afternoon and evening routines, my basic weekly plan where I have certain chores scheduled for different days of the week, and the Flylady zones and cleaning checklists for each room of the house.   I simply check things off as I get them done.  Then at the end of the day, I simply uncheck the lists and use them again tomorrow.  No more printing out checklists that get thrown away at the end of the day.

Screen shot of my basic weekly plan checklist

Screen shot of my Morning Routine checklist

Screen shot of my Flylady Zone 1 checklist

Other Cozi Features:

Screen shot of the grocery list checklist

Cozi also has a shopping list feature, but I don’t use it for my grocery list because I have another program that I prefer to use for that.  But I do use this feature for short grocery lists and for listing errands.  I’ll talk about the grocery list I prefer tomorrow when I cover that I part 3 of this series.  Another fun feature of Cozi is it’s journal.  You can take pictures and keep an online family journal.  Not a feature I’ve really used, but I think some people will really like it.

Screen shot of the Journal screen

Overall, I am in love with Cozi.  I think this is one of the most helpful and useful apps for homemakers.  It’s the one app that I’ve found I use most often.  It saves me time and money and really helps me to stay organized.  I actually think that doing things this way is a BIG improvement over my huge, old, dusty binder and I can’t recommend this app enough.

In part 3 of this series, I will be covering Menu planning & Shopping, so don’t forget to stop back by and read it!

Using Your Smart Phone as Your Homekeeping Handbook Part 1

Screen shot of my iPhone home page

I’ve been slow to get a smart phone. I honestly didn’t think I would use it as more than a phone and thought It would be just another gadget I’d get bored with.  After all, all I really use a phone for is making phone calls…right??  About a month ago, it was time for our contract to be renewed and as a surprise, my husband renewed it and got us all smart phones.  He bought me an iPhone.  While it was a neat gadget and I appreciated him buying it for me, I wasn’t really sure I’d use it for more than a phone.  HAHAHA…that was before I discovered apps and found that I could use it as my Homekeeping Handbook and finally toss the binder gathering dust on my kitchen counter!  This is so much easier than that old binder and because of it’s size, I can carry it with me everywhere!  Not to mention that most of the apps I use are FREE!  You just gotta love FREE!!

This is going to be a four part series.  In this series, I’m going to cover the following areas that I use and keep in my binder, but can now do on my smart phone!:  Bible/Quiet Time, Scheduling/Cleaning Routines, Menu planning & Shopping and then a part on some miscellaneous useful apps I’ve found.  So let’s get to it!

Using Your Smart Phone for Bible/Quiet Time

Screen Shot of YouVersion App

I use the YouVersion app for my Bible reading and quiet time.  It’s a nice little FREE Bible app that you can read the entire Bible right from your iPhone in a variety of versions in several languages.  It’s really quick and easy to navigate, so it works perfectly even when using during a church service.  There are over 150 different reading plans available.  What I like about them is that you can click off the Scriptures you read each day and it automatically updates you each day to what is the next scheduled Bible reading.  You can take notes, highlight Scripture and even post Scripture straight to Facebook and Twitter.  I can do my Bible reading from anywhere!  I often do it before I even get out of the bed in the morning, and because I don’t need to turn on the lights, I can do it while my husband sleeps and not disturb him.    It also includes quite a few devotionals that you can use in your quiet time.  But my absolute FAVORITE feature is that I can listen to my scripture reading on the iPod included with the iPhone!  Now I can listen to Scripture as I’m working.  LOVE IT!!

Screen shot of the Woody Hays Bible Memory Verses app

The next app I use for my Bible reading and quiet time is the Woody Hays Bible Memory Verses.  This is another FREE app has tons of Scripture separated into topics.  You choose a verse and this nifty little app helps you keep track of your Scripture memory work.  When you are working on memorizing a specific verse (target verse), it can display it with blanks you fill in to test yourself.  I will also allow you to record your own voice reading the verse.  You can even enter your own personal verses that you want to memorize, as well as search for verses.  When you’ve gotten your verse memorized, you just click the target in the top right corner and it becomes a heart and is moved to your memorized verses area, where they are always available for you to review.

I also have a prayer list, in the app I use for Scheduling and Cleaning Routines.  I will cover that in the Part 2.  But, I am able to keep a listing of Prayer requests and such on my iPhone.  This allows me to have my prayer list with me where ever I go.  It makes it simple to just pop in a new prayer request as I get them and to pray on the go.  I always have had a hard time remembering all the prayer requests I get and this helps me.  It is also a reminder to check in with the person and see how things are going.  Love being able to do this, and I’ll cover this subject more tomorrow.

While this isn’t in depth study I’m doing on my iPhone, it has certainly been a BIG help in getting my quiet time and Bible reading in.  I have no excuse now, because my phone is always with me.  I can do it while waiting in line at the grocery store, listen to a reading while driving, and so much more.  I have a Bible that can go with me wherever I am and allows me to read the Word wherever I am, whatever I’m doing.  To me this is a wonderful thing!

In Part 2, I will be covering how I do my scheduling, to-do list, and cleaning routines all on my iPhone!

Video Blog Coming Soon

I’m going to be doing another video blog sometime next week, so if you have any questions you’d like answered, post them here! I love being able to interact with y’all this way…no question is too silly or off limits (within reason)!  I think this is such a fun way to get to know my readers and for y’all to get to know me.  Don’t hesitate or be afraid to ask, just leave your question in the comments!

Thank Your Lord For Laundry

Thank you Lord for all our dirty laundry. When I wash them, I am reminded that you have been good enough to have provided me with a washing machine. There are many people in the world who still have to do laundry in the closest stream using rocks. Thanks you also for dirty, greasy work clothes. It means that you have provided me with a hard working husband who provides well for our family. I also thank you for food splattered aprons, which reminds me you have provided us with healthy food for our family to eat. I’m especially thankful for the muddy and dirty play clothes, it shows me that I have two healthy and hearty boys who are growing up to be real men some day. I thank you for everything Father, the good and the bad, the fun and the not-so-fun…because I know that you hand is in all things and everything works for Your glory! Amen!

In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. ~1Thessalonians 5:18

 

 

New Beginnings

It seems to me this week, that it’s been a time of new beginnings for me. This week I have started a couple of different challenges/projects that I hope will help me in my life as a wife and keeper at home.

Sunday, I started leading a study on the book, “The Excellent Wife” by Martha Peace.  This is a 24 week study that I’m really committed to and I have a small group of ladies on Facebook that are working through the study with me.  I have read this book before and it really changed  my outlook on what God expects from a wife.  But, I’ve been allowing some really negative thoughts and influences into my life which have affected my life as a wife.  God has really been burdening my heart in this area, so I knew that this is one area where I really needed to put in some work.  “The Excellent Wife” study is a good beginning.  I am completely and totally committed to my husband.  I’m in this marriage for the long haul.  While there are things about my husband and marriage that I would love to change, I’ve come to realize that the only thing I can change is my own life and my own outlook.   And even that I can’t completely do on my own, some of the changes in me will have to be a work of God.   But, I believe that I’m on the right path once again.

I’ve also joined in the Maximize Your Mornings challenge. The Maximize Your Mornings Challenge (aka HelloMornings) is a Tri-Annual (3 month) challenge based on the Maximize Your Mornings eBook.  It’s a great way to be accountable and get encouragement in helping to establish a morning routine.  Basically, I’ve set the goal of getting up by 5:30 a.m. to have a quiet time, plan my day and exercise.  While I didn’t jump right out of bed at 5:30 this morning, I did get up at 6:45.  For me, it’s all about baby steps.  I work on getting up earlier and earlier every day.  Just by getting up about 45 minutes earlier today, I was able to get so much more accomplished before the kids got up.  I had by Bible reading knocked out by 7 am and my day planned out by 7:30.  Big improvement for me.  I’ve been wanting to get up earlier for a long while now, but I’ve always been such a night owl, that it’s been a BIG struggle for me.  But I really have felt that the Lord was leading me to this, that I finally decided to stop struggling against it and just do it.  Right now, I’m just focusing on getting up earlier each day, doing my quiet time/Bible reading, and planning out my day.  In a few weeks after those have become routine, I’ll start working in some exercise (which I REALLY need).  Baby steps, baby steps, baby steps!!

I have also started up a new blog, it’s called Hidden in My Heart.  It’s going to be my Bible study journal.  I’m using the SOAP method and I’ll be posting my daily SOAP’s there along with other things/thoughts I come across while studying.  Although I’m doing this more for myself, feel free to visit if you like.  I could have just posted them here on this blog, but I wanted to separate them so I could organize them better.

Another area where I’m having a new beginning is on my housekeeping.  I have really let it get ahead of me.  Part of it was that over the summer, our air conditioning in most of the house was not working.  We only had one in the bedroom that works correctly.  We couldn’t afford to purchase new ones right then, so we just sweated it out and practically lived in the bedroom.  With Texas having one of the hottest summers on record, it was pretty miserable in the rest of the house.  So, as a result, I really let some areas slide in regard to cleaning.   Now that cooler temps are ahead, I’ve got to spend some extra time working on the house and setting it in rights again.  I am also going to be working on my cleaning schedules and control journal.  Marty recently got us iPhones when we renewed our contract and I’ve discovered a really neat app called Cozi.  This app is fantastic AND it comes with Flylady lists and calendars.  This app has a calendar of events you can fill in and a to-do list.  You can update your calendar and to-do list online or on your phone and it’s instantly updated on both your phone and online.  It can also send text reminders to every member of your family that has a phone of important appointments and dates.  Everyone in the family can update and create t0-d0 lists from their phones and from online.  I am loving this app and I can see it being very useful and I think I can use it for my control journal with ease…so no more notebook on the counter.

Speaking of iPhone apps, I have also found a GREAT grocery list app that I am loving called Grocery iQ.  I love it because you can update it from your phone or online and it instantly updates on both your phone and online.  You can send lists to other family members.  You can scan bar codes to enter things onto your grocery list.  You can sort your list by catagories and you can even enter the prices as you shop to keep a running total (love this!).  You can even print and email coupons right from your phone.  It allows you to have multiple shopping lists for multiple stores.  It allows for list synchronization which will allow you to keep your lists up to date from multiple devices.  This means that my husband can add on to my shopping list with things he needs but forgot to tell me about and visa-versa.  I love that feature!

Someday soon, I’ll have to write up a blog post about how I’m using my iPhone as my control journal, but only after I perfect it.

Well, I’m off to a good start today and don’t want to mar it by spending too much time on this computer.  I hope y’all have a fantastic and blessed day!

Inductive Bible Study

First of all, I want to state up front that I am NO Bible expert and I am certainly not an expert on inductive Bible study.  I was first introduced to Inductive Bible Study from Courtney over at Women Living Well.  She did a post about “How to Study Your Bible With Colored Pencils”.  I had never heard of such a thing, but I was intrigued.  So, she introduced me to Kay Arthur’s books about the Inductive Bible study method.

So, just WHAT is inductive Bible study?  It’s a systematical way of digging into the Word of God.  Inductive Bible study is broken down into 3 parts, observation, interpretation, and application.  But before we get into the different parts, I want to talk about the tools you will need to do inductive study.

1. You will need a copy of the book you’d like to study, printed out on paper using double space between each line and with extra wide margins for notes.  I simply print out my own .  I go to Unbound Bible and simply choose the Bible version I want and the book I want and then click search.  This will pull up the entire book.  I then copy and paste the text to my MS Word.  I then set the margins wider and double space.  I also have each chapter of the book on a new page (using page breaks).  Then print.
2. You will need a set of colored pencils and pens.  I  use Crayola 12ct Twistable Colored Pencils.  These work great for me and I don’t have to worry about sharpening them .  I also use a set of highlighters (pink,  orange, yellow, green, and blue) and a set of gel pens (red, purple, green and blue)
3. You will also need a pen for writing notes (I use black)
4. you will need paper, I simply use regular notebook paper, I prefer college rule.
5. A dictionary, just a good basic one.  I would love to get the American Dictionary of the English Language (1828 Facsimile Edition)(Noah Webster’s), but until I can afford it, I’m just using what I have.
6. Strong’s Concordance, keyed to the Bible version you plan on using (I prefer KJV). I use one similar to this one, The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance Of The Bible Expanded Edition

While not required, I also like to have a couple of other Bible versions available to refer to.  I have the New King James and New American Standard Version.

Before you begin, I always start my Bible study with prayer.  I like to pray for understanding of what I’m reading and to be shown areas that I need to apply to my own life.

Observation is when you just read through the book and observe what’s going on.  Answering the simple questions who?, what?, when?, where?, why? and how? (WWWWW&H)  As you read through, you will find key words/phrases (words often repeated), people, place and times.  You will mark these items with your colored pencils in a distinctive way to help you recognize them.   You may also observe lists in which you want to keep track of.  Also, look up words you don’t understand.   Basically this step is to help you get the gist of what’s going on and what the book is about (key words).  During this step, I read Titus at least 12 times! 

The next step is interpretation.  This is basically discovering just what the Bible is saying.  For this step, I used my dictionary and my Strong’s.  I took the key words and looked up each instance it was found in the book in my Strong’s and made a note of the Strong’s number, definition and how the word was translated in the Bible.  I then made list of what I observed for each key word.   I look up in the dictionary any words I don’t understand and also refer to my other Bible versions when I need help clarifying something. I also write up a summary of what I have learned from the lists I made about the key words in the observation step of the study.   During this step I read Titus at least 3 times.

The final step is application.  This is where you learn how to apply Bible truths to your own personal life.  You get reproof, correction and training on doctrine.  You apply the doctrine/truth you’ve learned to your own life.  You correct misunderstanding in doctrine.  As I read the Word, there are always certain verses that really POP out to me.  This is the Holy Spirit showing me Scripture that I need work on in my personal life.  I mark these verses in a special way.   For these verses, I like to use the SOAP method.  I do the SOAP method on each of these verses that POP out to me. 

So, this is how I do an inductive Bible study.  I don’t follow all the steps listed in Kay Arthur’s book, but I took what worked for me and added a few things I’ve learned in other places (like the SOAP method).  This method was great to use and I ended up reading Titus at least 15 times, which really helped me to remember what I read and helps me to “hide” His Word in my heart.  I really grew from this study and am now looking forward to more Inductive studies!  I’m currently working through the smaller books of the New Testament, until I get the hang of it and then I’ll give a try on a longer book.  I’d like to work this way through the entire New Testament and then start working through the Old Testament.  My Titus study took over a month to do, but I worked in small chunks of time when I could.  It could certainly be done faster if you set aside a specific time for it each day, say an hour.   I have grown so much as a Christian, just by doing one inductive study, and can’t wait wait to see how I grow with each additional one I do!!  I cannot recommend this Bible study method enough!

A Long Time Ago in a Galaxy Far, Far Away…

Sorry it’s been so long without a post.  This has been an interesting week to say the least.

Justin's beautiful bride, Jennie (love my new sister!!)

Friday afternoon, we drove up to Fort Worth area for my youngest Brother-in-law’s (Justin) wedding.  We picked him up and drove over to Roanoke for the rehearsal dinner and the rehearsal.  I was the “official” wedding photographer so I had fun taking lots of pictures.  After that, we headed back over to Justin’s house to spend the night.  We had a nice time visiting with him and all was well until around 1 a.m. when I started having these terrible stabbing pains in my lower left back.  They continued most of the night, and it was after 4 a.m. before I was finally able to sleep.  We got up around 7:30 and I was feeling a little better, so, since I was the photographer, I pushed on and headed to the place where the wedding was to take photos.

All day Saturday, I took photos and hung out with family, but I continued to feel worse and worse.  I managed to make it through the entire wedding, but by the time we left I was again in considerable pain and nauseous as all get out.  Marty, the kids and I started heading home.  I got so bad that I finally had Marty stop at Hugley hospital in Burleson/Crowley because I honestly didn’t think I could make it home.  I got admitted in the ER and the doctor seemed to think that I either had a tubal pregnancy that might have burst or an ovarian cyst.  They gave me meds for the pain and nausea and sent my for a CT scan.  I was there for nearly 6 hours.  The doctor came in and said that my CT scan and blood tests had come back clean and the only thing they noticed was that I had a really high white blood count in my urine.  So, I was diagnosed with either a kidney infection or a UTI.  What was so weird though, was that I didn’t have any of the normal symptoms of a UTI, so I didn’t even suspect that was what it could be.  While I was waiting, Marty too the boys to eat and run off some energy.  He ended up buying me a little surprise.  Our cell phones were up for renewal, and he did that while I was waiting to be release.  He got us iPhones!!!  WOOT!!!  I was so surprised and excited when he told me (after I had woken up from all the meds they had me on)!  I finally got the meds out of my system and they gave me a prescription for Cipro and sent me on my way.  We got home late Saturday night…we had to stop and eat because I really hadn’t eaten anything all day because of the nausea.  Praise the Lord, all was okay!  I was really worried!

So, Sunday and Monday, I pretty much laid around the house and tried to recooperate.  Marty was home all day Monday because of the holiday so that was a big help.  Plus we had much cooler temps this week…I actually had to pull out some fleece pj bottoms to sleep in at night!  But then on Monday, Riley got sick with a fun 24 hour stomach virus.  He tossed cookies several times, including once at 3 a.m….all over his bedding.  By Tuesday he was back to his normal self.  Tuesday and Wednesday I spent the day processing photos from the wedding.  I still have a ton more to do, but will have to work on them some this weekend.

Thursday, my Dad came down to see how much fencing needs replacing so he can put some cows on our place.  After he was done’ he took us all out for lunch.  He headed home shortly after lunch.  Then Riley and I headed home and took a short nap, until Marty texted me to come back over to his work and look at some used living room furniture.  His boss and wife had bought new LR furniture and offered us their old couch and matching chair.  It’s a real pretty sage-y green (greenish gray) and is in excellent condition and is really comfy!  Marty will bring it home this weekend.

Anyway, as I was leaving home, I noticed a lot of smoke off in the distance.  As many of you know, Texas is burning to the ground (at least that’s how it seems).  We’re just one big tenderbox waiting for a match because of this drought.  By the time I got to Marty’s work, the smoke had increased.  We found out that it was over by the Lake Whitney dam.  As of this morning, the fire is 100 percent contained, but was not yet completely extinguished.  But if it was still out of hand, it could have easily reached us, it was only 10-15 miles away.  Thankfully the firefighters got it under control.  Everyone in Texas needs to hug every firefighter and VFD member that they see.  They are doing a wonderful job under the circumstances trying to keep us safe.  So all day yesterday, we were listening to the Fire/emergency radio and keeping updated via ham radio.  I’m also thankful for all the Ham operators, they were helping to keep us updated as there is no other current news on this fire on TV or the internet (Obama speech took precedence).  All in all, 7 houses were burned, about 200 people were evacuated (and still are as far as I know) and Whitney schools are closed.  They were without power at least a portion of yesterday evening, but I haven’t heard yet if they how power this morning.

Today, I’ve been listening to the fire/emergency radio, and lots of our area VFD are out on different fires (there are a BUNCH) in the area and continuing to work on the big one by the dam.  God bless these men and women!  I know they must be exhausted and many of these VFD are stretched to the limit and working with skeleton crews because not enough people volunteer and/or have to work during the day.  Later this morning, I’ll meet Marty for lunch and then run a few errands and pay a few bills.  Then maybe this weekend, I may be meeting my online friend Christine.  She’s helping to schedule and work out the details for  Texas Rubies Retreat, which is being held just 10 minutes down the road from us at Latham Springs Encampment.  It’s going to be held in April 2012 and just so happens to fall on my birthday weekend…guess what I’m going to ask to receive for my birthday!?!

So, as you can see, it’s been an interesting week around here.  I hoping to be back, more on schedule, next week.  Until then, have a beautiful and blessed weekend!

The Beatitudes

Photo courtesy of Will Humes on flickr

Blessed [are] the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed [are] they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
Blessed [are] the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed [are] they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
Blessed [are] the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
Blessed [are] the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
Blessed [are] the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
Blessed [are] they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are ye, when [men] shall revile you, and persecute [you], and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great [is] your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.
~ Matthew 5:3-12

1. Blessed [are] the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. – we are to be humble, sincere and penitent (sorrowful on account of our sins)
2. Blessed [are] they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. – we are to express sorrow and grief for our sins
3. Blessed [are] the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. – we are to be submissive to God’s will. We are to rely on God for all our needs and be thankful for His providence.
4. Blessed [are] they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. – we are to want and desire righteousness (purity of heart) and holiness. We are to strive to follow God’s law
5. Blessed [are] the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. – We are to be merciful and compassionate.
6. Blessed [are] the pure in heart: for they shall see God. – we are to be without spot or blemish; incorrupt. We can only achieve this through Christ.
7. Blessed [are] the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. – out of our love for God we are to do good for all people. We are to show peace, be peaceable and make peace with all people.
8. Blessed [are] they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when [men] shall revile you, and persecute [you], and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great [is] your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. – we will be punished persecuted and harassed for our beliefs. People will speak falsely and negatively about us, all because of our belief in Christ. But we should rejoice in this persecution because we know that the Lord is alive and doing His works through us.